A Hidden Past (Open) *KEEP*

[Faith Appleby]

The Hogwarts library had become a sort of second home to Faith over the past two years. Unlike many of her Ravenclaw classmates; Faith’s intelligence and decent grades didn’t come naturally – she had to work for her grades, and work hard. And though she could almost always find a study group or two to join in the common room, she tired of the high academic discussions that the groups often burst into (especially towards the end of term when she felt like her brain could cram no more). So, by the end of her first year, Faith had discovered a few individual study desks in a quiet, secluded corner of the library, and quickly adopted one as her own refuge from the world. It was her favorite place to escape to, especially when she was beginning to feel particularly overwhelmed. She had, in fact, spent nearly every day over the last few weeks here, working over the details of her many classes before her exams and finishing up her last assignments.

Today, however, Faith walked purposefully into the library with no intention whatsoever of studying for her exams. Today her purpose was quite personal, and she tightened her grip on the small green briefcase she was clutching at the thought of it.

The library seemed to have a larger-than-usual number of students milling around; but that was to be expected near the end of the term. None of that mattered to Faith today though, and she only nodded out of kindness to the few students who acknowledged her as she passed.

Faith’s desk was located towards the back of the History section, where the books had fallen into disrepair out of misuse. Most of them were only helpful for the History of Magic NEWT classes, and few students otherwise liked the subject well enough to find their way to her corner. Every now and again a student would come wandering to the back, sure, but Faith knew that she would likely not be disturbed for at least a few hours.

Faith set her briefcase on the desk and opened it. By its size, one might have been surprised that it could hold anything; but its meager contents made it appear even smaller. All the briefcase contained was a newspaper clipping, a file containing two sheets of paper, a hairpin, and a tie-clip for a muggle necktie. It would have been laughable to any outsider; but these few items were Faith’s dearest possessions--her only clues to her parents’ disappearance and reminders that they even existed at all.

Just as Faith began to pull out the papers to examine once again (somewhere, there had to be a hint to what happened to them), she heard the sound of approaching footsteps somewhere along the stacks. “Great,” Faith quietly muttered to herself as she quickly returned the papers to the briefcase and snapped it closed. She turned to the nearest stack and pretended to be closely examining a book (whose front cover had either fallen off or turned to dust), hoping that whoever the footsteps belonged to wouldn’t talk to her – she didn’t always do particularly well in social situations, especially when they were one-on-one.

((OOC: I would like to ask that if anyone approaches Faith with intent of mischief that they NOT destroy or damage the contents of the briefcase in any way. They are VERY important to Faith's character and purpose, and need to remain intact. You may, however, interact with the items however you'd like otherwise. Thanks! ))

[Serephine Rylier]

The bustle and clamor of the other students chatting and mingling amongst friends assaulted her as Serephine anxiously edged the heavy oak wood of the library doors open. Tightly clutching a sheaf of parchments in her shaking hands, she quickly stepped over the threshold and proceeded to the vacant section of the library. Though she rarely visited the historical section of the school library, she instantly realized, rather tactlessly, that no one in their right mind would care to browse that area, as far as she was concerned. So why should I be expected to? She asked herself. Truthfully, it was her mother’s prodding. Adelwiess had insistently persuaded her to immerse herself in the “fascinating history of our ancestors”. So, not unlike an obedient dog to her master, she had complied. Sighing audibly, she plodded sulkily ahead.

Serephine’s first reaction to the shelf of withering books, (centuries old, it seemed), that were heaped haphazardly in untidy stacks was blank shock. Had she stumbled upon some austere portal that had transported her to a graveyard? It was certainly plausible. Wrinkling her nose with disgust and reluctance, she briefly pondered the thought that she could be the first student to witness this spectacle, the first to set eyes upon this misshapen and ghastly sight. It was impossible to discern any of the titles that the textbooks bore. A quick scan with her nearly transparent blue eyes revealed that none of the books were intact. Eying the display with shrewd distaste, she snatched up the first book she saw.

Relinquishing her grasp on the sheaf of parchments, she peered at the no-longer-glossy, gilt cover of the book she had seized. Tucking an escaping lock of strawberry blond hair behind her pale, pointed ear, she brushed the mountain of dust accumulating on its cover. Witch burning, the faded letters stated. Eyes in their customary state of appearing glazed, she mechanically flipped the yellowed pages of the book. Half of the ripped pages swirled out from the clasp of its collapsed spine. Starting guiltily, she snapped the book shut, (which gave a sort of low, guttural moan), and thrust it back onto the shelf. She hurriedly gathered up the fallen sheaf of parchments she had liberated and slunk down the row, praying no one would notice the even more disorganized mass and the lose sheets of crinkled, stained papers.

“Great,” Serephine heard someone mutter. Creeping closer towards the source of the voice, which appeared to be directed at her, she burst into the scene of an auburn haired 3rd year girl, whom she acknowledged as Faith Appleby. Faith had the appearance of someone uncovering secrets – personal secrets. Embarrassed at her intrusion, she offered to introduce herself.

“Um, hi, I’m Serephine Rylier, a third year Slytherin here,” she initiated shyly. “You’re Faith Appleby right?” She glanced momentarily at the briefcase before continuing. “What’s in there?” She finally asked abruptly, too intent upon discovering its contents to bother appearing polite.

[Faith Appleby]

The source of the footsteps appeared soon enough, and Faith caught a glimpse of the girl as she glanced past the unknown book she had been “examining.” They belonged to a thin, Slytherin girl with neatly-cut strawberry-blonde hair that Faith vaguely recognized as another 3rd year student, with whom she couldn’t associate a name. For fear of being caught staring, Faith quickly returned her attention to the worn book, pulling it off the shelf a little too quickly, just as the girl rounded the corner to where Faith stood.

“Um, hi, I’m Serephine Rylier, a third year Slytherin here,” she initiated shyly. “You’re Faith Appleby right?”

Faith looked up to meet the eyes of Serephine, looking only slightly past them. They told her that the girl was at least a little embarrassed to have disturbed her. “Uh, yeah. Hi,” Faith offered.

But as Faith replied, Serephine’s eyes betrayed her with a glance towards Faith’s briefcase. Instinctually, Faith retreated slightly, ready to defend her possessions if she needed to, expecting what came next.

“What’s in there?” [Serephine] finally asked abruptly, too intent upon discovering its contents to bother appearing polite.

What would she say? She couldn’t tell this girl the truth; the contents of the briefcase were very private and because of the nature of her parents’ disappearance, Faith trusted no one with any more information about her past than was absolutely necessary. But lying was a skill Faith had not yet mastered, and Serephine didn’t seem the type to drop the subject with a simple answer like ‘Homework.’ So Faith settled on partial truth. She was in the History section, after all, so maybe she could just make it sound like she'd been digging into her ancestry.

“Oh, just some family research,” she said quickly, moving to change the subject. “Uh, what brings you back here? I didn’t think there were many other students that even knew about this corner of the library…”

[Serephine Rylier]

The second she inquired about the briefcase’s contents, Serephine immediately knew she wasn’t going to receive an answer. Noticing Faith’s sudden, defensive attitude, she began groaning inwardly. Why did she have to be so tactless and prying? Obviously, this was some private, personal business she had no right in knowing or questioning, even. Great, she thought bitterly, now I’ve just about made myself another enemy. And yet the locked briefcase appeared to be taunting her, provoking her into further insistency. She certainly felt a strong sense of gravitation towards it. It took all of her self-restraint not to aggressively demand an instant response. This fierce battle kept raging in her mind. Inwardly struggling, she barely caught Faith’s reply.

“Oh, just some family research,” [Faith] said quickly, moving to change the subject. “Uh, what brings you back here? I didn’t think there were many other students that even knew about this corner of the library…” As her words began trailing off, Serephine noticed her reluctance in pursuing the matter.

Her excuse seemed to fit with her manner, so Serephine unwilling had to relinquish her curiosity. After all, she wouldn’t want Faith to know about poor Elise and her tragic death… She needed to respect Faith’s need for confidentialness. As more time elapsed, she made a resolution to smooth out the rifting tension between the two by adopting a humiliatingly perky attitude.

“Oh I don’t suppose they do,” Serephine responded, forcing false merriment into her tone (which pretty much exhausted all of her remaining energy), “judging by the shabby conditions of those textbooks and the expansive accumulation of dust. Honestly, I must be the first to set foot there! Well, I was looking at one of the books (completely indistinguishable, couldn't tell you which one it was) because my mother was pressuring me to." Ending her ridiculous little speech with a light giggle of fake laughter, she nearly collapsed with exertion and the massive effort of keeping friendly. Ugh, this killing me, she thought. How on earth do people actually manage to attract friends? How can they do so so naturally?

[Faith Appleby]

The tension between Faith and her new acquaintance was growing thicker by the second. Faith had been unsuccessful in hiding her fear well, and Serephine was reacting directly to it with an unsettling and unnatural perkiness that seemed to wear the poor girl out.

It was obvious that Serephine hadn’t bought Faith's lame response, but at least she didn’t continue to prod outright. This was a good sign; it meant that she had at least a bit of respect for Faith’s privacy, and Faith loosened a little as Serephine spoke.

“Oh I don’t suppose they do,” Serephine responded, forcing false merriment into her tone, “judging by the shabby conditions of those textbooks and the expansive accumulation of dust. Honestly, I must be the first to set foot there!”

Faith allowed herself a quiet giggle at Serephine’s comment as she continued, ”I was looking at one of the books (completely indistinguishable, couldn't tell you which one it was) because my mother was pressuring me to."

Though the Slytherin had maintained her unnatural smile, Faith had noticed a small change in the girl’s tone; especially when she mentioned her mother. ‘Perhaps I have more in common with this girl than I’d thought…seems she has a bit of a crazy past too…even if she does have parents…’ Faith thought, relaxing just enough to show Serephine she understood.

Serephine was trying so hard to be kind to Faith, and Faith hadn’t returned any part of the favor. The last thing Faith wanted was for someone to hate her for such a silly reason; she had a hard enough time making friends as it was.

“Do you want to sit down?” Faith offered, nodding towards a slightly larger desk just to the right of her own with enough room for two chairs, “Maybe I can help you find what you’re looking for. I like to come back here to study because it’s so quiet, and I’ve done a little browsing out of boredom…”

Faith attempted a slight, sympathetic smile as she grabbed the briefcase off the desk and pulled the chair with intent to slide it over to the larger table; but as she did so, the chair leg caught a knot in the carpet and Faith tripped right over it, sending everything in her hands flying. Faith quickly pushed herself up off the carpet onto her knees and looked around frantically for her possessions; her cheeks filled with the deep crimson of embarrassment.

The book she’d pulled off the shelf earlier had successfully separated into several pieces scattered across the small space, a few single pages still floating idly towards the floor. And there, just out of her reach, sitting open with a corner resting on Serephine’s left foot was the small green briefcase.

[Serephine Rylier]

Serephine’s solitary life had been consumed with fervent wishes for friendship and was punctuated with longings for her mother to return from her excursion of the world. Her father had attempted to satisfy her increasing needs, doing all he could, but that only resulted in his appearing to have rapidly aged a century throughout her years as a youth. He provided her with a firm and comforting shelter and a handsome tawny owl christened Magyna. But his attempts were merely futile and irrelevant – she was still missing an integral portion of her life: the very reason for existence. Magyna’s companionship was all very well, yet she required a true friend, something of which she had never really experienced.

In her life, it was obviously apparent that she was destined for seclusion. She labeled herself as a bad luck charm and blamed everything in her life upon karma. Because of her, her only cousin, Elise Nightstyr, who was an adorably innocent youngster aged five, had perished along with her parents in a tragic plane crash on the way to visit Serephine and her father less than a month ago. Not only was Elise her only cousin, but she also was her last cousin (the other two had disappeared under mysterious circumstances). Moreover, Serephine would never receive another cousin as her late Aunt Carrie was her mother’s only sibling, while her father, not unlike Serephine, was an only child. So you really couldn’t blame her extreme wariness when she suddenly stumbled upon a promising friendship.

“Do you want to sit down?” Faith offered, nodding towards a slightly larger desk just to the right of her own with enough room for two chairs, “Maybe I can help you find what you’re looking for. I like to come back here to study because it’s so quiet, and I’ve done a little browsing out of boredom…”

Gently chewing on her lip, Serephine hesitated before replying. “Oh, okay. Well, believe it or not, my mother,” Serephine huffed with mock indignity, pronouncing the last word with light disgust that she immediately regretted, “has basically told me to read and memorize all the information of all the books in the library if I knew what was good for me. So I need some serious help in translating those mottled texts.” She was about to continue ranting when a sudden commotion occurred.

Faith attempted a slight, sympathetic smile as she grabbed the briefcase off the desk and pulled the chair with intent to slide it over to the larger table; but as she did so, the chair leg caught a knot in the carpet and Faith tripped right over it, sending everything in her hands flying. Faith quickly pushed herself up off the carpet onto her knees and looked around frantically for her possessions; her cheeks filled with the deep crimson of embarrassment.

Serephine, too, was sent flailing but managed to steady herself against the battered, dented desk she was leaning on. As papers began shooting through the air (with Serephine desperately trying to snatch them), the boxy, moss-green briefcase had been flung into the air as well and traveled a short distance before plummeting onto her left foot, snapping open and spewing its contents all over the carpet. Giving a short gasp of pain, she cast the papers onto the desk and leaned down to remove the case off her toe, which was tingling with pain and bent down to see if Faith was alright. Thankfully the carpet was thickly woven, (though rather frayed and weakened in certain areas), and Faith was physically unhurt.

Serephine peered anxiously down at Faith lying sprawled against the carpeted floor, her cheeks flushed scarlet with humiliation. “Are you okay?” she asked. “You don’t need to visit the Hospital Wing, do you?”

[Faith Appleby]

Time had stopped. Surely. It must have.

Faith's dearest possessions had been strewn across the floor haphazardly, and all Serephine had to do was pick up the items and run with them. But she didn't. She didn't. It was as though the intense determination Faith had read in the girl's eyes earlier had just disappeared; and in it's place was genuine concern and worry.

Serephine peered anxiously down at Faith lying sprawled against the carpeted floor, her cheeks flushed scarlet with humiliation. “Are you okay?” she asked. “You don’t need to visit the Hospital Wing, do you?”

"Um, no...I don't think so...," Faith replied, shaking her head partly due to disorientation, and partly out of disbelief. After a few seconds, Faith took a closer look at the mess around her and sighed. Still on her knees, she began to silently work her way across the small space, attempting to return it to rights again and turning what she'd just observed over and over in her head.

Since Faith had come to Hogwarts two years ago, she'd quickly learned that Slytherins were generally not to be trusted with any personal or private information; not because of any prejudice or stereotype, but because their intense personal ambition and natural drive to get what they wanted tended to take precedence over kindness and consideration for others. It was just part of their being.

But Serephine appeared to be an exception to that rule. She'd put Faith's well-being over her own desires, and Faith couldn't understand how or why. All she knew now was that it seemed she'd managed to truly make a real friend. And she no longer cared that Serephine had seen her secrets, and had decided to tell her new friend the truth; if she still wanted to know.

As she pushed herself completely up off the floor, Faith returned the book (with all its pages placed as neatly as possible into what remained of the binding) to the shelf, and set the briefcase (once again containing her possessions) on the large table, open. If there had been any floating emotion existing on Faith's person before; it had disappeared, leaving only truth to be read on her face.

"Serephine," Faith began, using the girl's name for the first time since they'd met, "I wasn't completely honest with you earlier. I have a very hard time with trust, for reasons connected to the things in my briefcase, which are connected to a very personal and difficult part of my past....well, and present and future I guess..."

After a deep breath, Faith continued, "But you've been so kind to me, and even though I could tell you wanted to know more...you dropped it..." Faith stood in silence for a moment before moving on. "I guess...I've never really had a real friend before, and....I can't believe I'm saying this...but... I really feel like I can trust you, and I don't think I can keep this whole thing to myself anymore."

She paused, and, for the first time since Serephine's introduction, Faith locked her eyes straight onto Serephine's to show she was serious; "What I'm trying to say is, if you have time, and are willing to listen, I'd like to tell you about...well...everything, I guess."

Faith lowered her gaze and sat, emotionally exhausted (and just the tiniest bit sore), in the chair she had tripped over only a few minutes earlier, wondering whether she'd just done the right thing or if she'd soon come to regret her choice.

[Serephine Rylier]

As she awkwardly crouched by Faith’s side, Serephine was abruptly visited by a chilling memory – a recent one. She recalled the exact sensation she had experienced a month ago, moments before receiving the dreaded owl bearing the solitary word: “dead”. She and her father had examined the note the owl, a dazzling snowy messenger streaked with ash-gray, had delivered closely for clues, tapping their wands against it and muttering various revealing charms. But nothing. They had even hired a private investigator to analyze it for fingerprints and other markings to identify the sender (of course they never revealed that they had enlisted the assistance of a muggle to Serephine’s mother, a true pureblood who was sorted into Slytherin during her attendance at Hogwarts). The note still blatantly refused to be of help. It was, however, apparent from its message that someone close to the family had perished, but who?

Precisely one week later, her father deduced through elimination that her beloved cousin Elise and her parents had died, seeing as they had not arrived at the Rylier household as intended. And yet she had known who it was beforehand – or at least had a nagging suspicion. But nevertheless, suspicion or not, Elise was dead and she was grieving her loss.

Serephine’s suspicious presumption had been accompanied by the fierceness of her heart pounding an anguished tattoo, so dissimilar from its typical, rhythmical beat. It was a replica of the one she was experiencing now. Déjà vu; that was what it was referred to as. Oh, how it appeared to rule her life. Theoretically, it determined her life. She had discovered its meaning years ago and loathed it more with each passing second. Such a haunting phrase.

"Um, no...I don't think so...," Faith [said], shaking her head partly due to disorientation, and partly out of disbelief, in response to Serephine’s previous inquiry. Her voice ended Serephine’s reminiscence, reverberating as Serephine recollected her scattered thoughts. After a few seconds, Faith took a closer look at the mess around her and sighed. Still on her knees, she began to silently work her way across the small space, attempting to return it to rights again and turning what she'd just observed over and over in her head.

“Good,” Serephine replied listlessly, not intending her brusque tone. She straightened and slid a chair out from a neighboring desk and flopped onto it.

"Serephine," Faith began, using [her] name for the first time since they'd met, "I wasn't completely honest with you earlier. I have a very hard time with trust, for reasons connected to the things in my briefcase, which are connected to a very personal and difficult part of my past....well, and present and future I guess..."

After a deep breath, Faith continued, "But you've been so kind to me, and even though I could tell you wanted to know more...you dropped it..." Faith stood in silence for a moment before moving on. "I guess...I've never really had a real friend before, and....I can't believe I'm saying this...but... I really feel like I can trust you, and I don't think I can keep this whole thing to myself anymore."

Just like me, Serephine reflected thoughtfully.


[Faith] paused, and, for the first time since Serephine's introduction, locked her eyes straight onto Serephine's to show she was serious; "What I'm trying to say is, if you have time, and are willing to listen, I'd like to tell you about...well...everything, I guess.

How intriguing, Serephine thought, absolutely mystified. Faith was acting very unlike how she had behaved during their preliminary encounter. Had she unintentionally applied peer-pressure without realizing it? Nodding solemnly, she motioned for her to continue, awaiting her next words eagerly. For certain, she was on the brink of discovering a deep, dark secret surely imbedded with lies and deceit, things her soul ravenously fed on, being a Slytherin of course. However, she would courteously keep Faith’s secret, for she never revealed secrets and did not wish to break the tradition.

“I will keep it strictly confidential,” Serephine assured her. “I promise.”

[Faith Appleby]

The tinge of regret was itching its way into Faith's mind as she waited for Serephine's response. She really didn't ever trust so easily...so what was it about this girl that had captivated her into telling all?

“I will keep it strictly confidential,” Serephine assured her. “I promise.”

Faith noted the serious tone in Serephine's voice and took in a deep breath. She looked around out past the stacks, suddenly very worried that someone may be eavesdropping. When she was absolutely positive there was no one around, she looked again at Serephine.

"It's about my parents," Faith began with a heavy sigh. "They worked for the Ministry doing some kind of secret work. All I knew about it was that it was very dangerous...dangerous enough that from the day I was born they had a plan in place in case something happened to them." She picked up the tie tack and began idly twirling it between her fingers over the desk.

"A month before my 11th birthday, they disappeared. My Aunt came to pick me up from grammar school, and I wasn't even allowed to go home. I guess they were scared someone might be waiting for me there or something..."

"Finding them has become a sort of obsession of mine since then. I mean, there's absolutely no trace of them...really anywhere...alive or dead. And I just don't think they're dead. They can't be. It may sound really weird, but...I used to get these feelings about things. I'd always be super-distracted on random days at school, and those were always the days mum and dad would come back late, or have to go talk about something regarding work in the office. I figured those were the 'dangerous' days," she paused, looking off into nowhere in particular, " And the day they disappeared, the feeling was worse, but not like they were dead worse...just like something bad had happened....And I haven't ever gotten rid of that feeling; but it's never gotten worse."

Faith took a moment to breathe, realizing she'd been speaking faster as she'd gone on, like she had to convince Serephine she wasn't making it all up or something. "Gosh, I'm sorry...I'm rambling. This is probably all ridiculous to you anyway...." she trailed off, returning her attention to the tie tack and wondering again why she'd decided to do this and whether Serephine was still genuinely interested or totally bored.